Environmental protectionists in the state of California plan to protest a proposal on the part of The Trump administration to greatly increase oil drilling at offshore locations in America.

The protests were planned for Thursday at 1:30 P.M. Pacific Time and is being held in the moments that approach a meeting in Sacramento where members of the public will have the opportunity to speak with government officials in regards to the plans to expand drilling efforts.

Officials in California had expressed on Wednesday that they will not allow the transport of petroleum through the waters of their state.

Thursday morning the California Coastal Commission joined the fray and requested that the state of California not be considered as an offshore drilling site. John Laird, the Natural Resources Secretary for the state has also spoken in opposition to the federal government drilling in California waters.

Thursday's protest is being organized by the combined efforts of the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Sierra Club. The protests will also feature a number of prominent public officials for the state such as Betty Yee, State Controller and Hannah-Beth Jackson, the state senator whose district of Santa Barbara has endured oil pollution along its coastline before due to oil spills.

The threat on the part of California to deny the transportation of oil off the state’s coast is the latest of a much larger effort by states to hinder the largest proposal to expand federal oil and gas leasing in America in decades. Other states involved in this fight are South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida, Washington, and Delaware.

The states against increased drilling say that the practice could damage beaches, kill wildlife, and cause tourism to decline in these areas. Gavin Newsom, Lieutenant Governor of California, expressed in a statement sent by email that he is “resolved” to make sure that the President’s drilling plan will not “make landfall” in his state.

Newsom was also critical of the federal government over the fact that only one public meeting on the matter was held in the most populated state in the country.

A spokesman for the Secretary of the Interior, Ryan Zinke answered Newsom’s criticisms by stating that the process for developing oil and gas leases has been a transparent one.